PARAMARIBO, SURINAME – Guyana remains the Caribbean’s most promising offshore exploration market despite already becoming the region’s leading oil producer, according to S&P Global Energy.
In fact, the firm estimates there are more than 90 prospects in the country with more than 100 million barrels each, a presentation showed.
Irena Agalliu, Vice President for Energy Policy and Regulatory Consulting at S&P Global Energy spoke during a Tuesday presentation titled “Upstream at a Crossroads: Navigating Cost, Complexity and Global Shifts” at the Suriname Energy, Oil and Gas Summit (SEOGS) 2026. She said Guyana combines the region’s largest discovered resource base with significant remaining exploration opportunities.
Agalliu said the offshore Caribbean has emerged as a major global exploration hotspot over the past decade and is expected to become an increasingly important source of oil and gas supply in the years ahead. While Guyana already leads the region in production growth, she noted that substantial undiscovered resources remain.
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“What is even more important is the prospective resources,” Agalliu said while discussing S&P’s assessment of the region’s offshore potential.
According to S&P, the core Caribbean offshore region, which includes Guyana, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Colombia and Venezuela, holds nearly 40 billion barrels of oil equivalent in remaining offshore reserves. Guyana accounts for the largest share of those reserves and also leads the region in prospective resources.
Agalliu said the number of offshore prospects exceeding 100 million barrels, particularly in Guyana and neighboring Suriname, points to significant room for additional discoveries and future development.
She also commended Guyana’s ability to move projects from discovery to production at a pace rarely seen elsewhere in the industry.
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“They have provided a template for expeditious development,” Agalliu said, noting that Guyana’s first offshore oil development, Liza 1, was brought onstream within about four and a half years of discovery.
The country has since increased production to around 900,000 barrels per day (b/d) and is expected to reach approximately 1.7 million b/d by 2035..
Agalliu attributed part of Guyana’s success to the government’s adherence to permitting timelines and its willingness to rely on external expertise to support project reviews.
“Guyana has been exceptional in accomplishing that,” she said.
